Wall structure and structural blocks for making same



E.L. BENTON., WALL STRUCTURE AND STRUC TURAL BLOCKS FOR MAKING SAME.

APPLICATION, FILED OCT \9, I917.

Patented May 10, 1921.

III!

UNITED stares EDWARD I. BENTON, GE LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

v WALL STRUCTURE AND STRUCTURAL BLOCKS FOR IVIAKING SAME.

Lactose.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 9, 1917.- Serial No. 195,857.v

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD L. BENTON, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at 521 Seaside avenue, Terminal Island, Los Angeles city, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Wall Structure and Structural Blocks for Making the Same, of which the following is a specification.

An object of this invention is to provide a substantial and cheap construction for walls in buildings and elsewhere, providing for ample air space, frame space and pipe space throughout; making provision for mortar space whereby the separate parts 01' the wall structure may be firmly bonded together, and also making provision whereby the structure can be erected at nominal expense of time and labor; at the same time making provision for constructing the blocks to interlock without a binder Where that form is desirable.

An object is to provide a concrete buildblock adapted to the construction 01" a structure such as above outlined, and which may be rapidly and cheaply molded and whereby a substitute for wooden walled buildings may be cheaply made, thus producing practically a fire-proof structure at an expense that may be less than the expense of constructing the walls with lumber.

While the invention is primarily adapted for constructing walls having superficial faces and internal braces of concrete, it is understood that other material than concrete may be employed, and I do not limit the invention to the use of concrete alone. Terra cotta and other materials may be employed within the judgment of the constructor.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention may appear from the accompanying drawings, the subjoined detail description and the appended claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.

Figure 1 is a fragmental perspective of a wall constructed in accordance with this invention. 4

Fig. 2 is a fragmental plan of a wall constructed in accordance with this invention, a portion of said wall being in section.

l? 1g, 3 is a sectional elevation on line in, T lg. 2.

F 1g. e is a plan of one of the structural blocks.

Fig. 5 is an inside elevation of said struca lug. 9 1s an elevation of the outslde of the wall corner shown in Fig. 8. r

Fig. l() is an elevation partly in section or the inside of the wall corner shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

The wall comprises two parallel series 1, 2, of structural blocks, each of which blocks comprises a face plate 3 provided on its inner face intermediate its ends with a tongue 4-; tongues of one series of blocks overlapping tongues of the other series of blocks so as to aiford means for binding the two series oi blocks together.

The tongues L are preferably recessed more or less as at 5 in Fig. 3 and at 6 in Fig. 7, so that when the blocks are placed in opposing series with tongues of one series of blocks overlapping the tongues of the other series of blocks, the lapping tongues will lock with one another, directly, in some instances and by means of a binder in other instances, thus to hold the wall true and stable.

The recesses may be variously constructed according to the judgmentof the constructor for the purpose of accommodating the binder 7, as in Figs. 1 and 3, or for the purpose of causing the lapping tongues to engage each other directly as in Fig. 7.

Preferably the recessing is of such character as to make the tongues dovetail in a plane of section cutting the face plate transversely. Preferably the extreme width of the tongue equals the width of the face plate.

The angles of the face plate and the tongue are preferably bounded by right Patented May 10, 1921.

lines, so that when the wall is constructed it will be stable.

The tongues t are preferably located midway between the ends of the face plate, so that when the blocks are erected in the two series 1 and 2, breaking joints evenly, tongues from the opposite face plates will overlap and there will be parallel vertical columns of lapped tongues; said columns being spaces apart as in Fig. 2, thus providing air spaces 8 in the wall adapted to. receive studding or other supports 9.

The recesses '5 are preferably of suflicient dimensions to not only accommodate mortar or other binder, but also to accommodate horizontal lines of rods, pipes, conduits, electrical conductors and the like as indicated by the pipe 10 in Fig. 3. For other accommodationsof such lines, and also for the accommodation of mortar or other binder, the free end of each tongue is provided with a transverse notch 11 which is adapted to cooperate with the recesses 5 in the accommodation of said line in some instances, and of a binder in other instances.

The blocks will preferably be standardized; all being alike. T he standard adopted may be of any desired dimensions. As an example of a desirable form of construction the face plate may be sixteen inches long and eight inches wide over all, and two inches thick or of any other desirable thickness, and the tongue projecting from the inside face may be four inches, more or less; but there is nothing arbitrary with regard to the dimensions.

The free end of the tongue may be provided with a transverse groove 12 cut to any desired depth between the alined contacting faces 13 which are adapted to engage the inside face a of the opposing block. These grooves 12 communicate with the air spaces 8, thus affording a continuous, tortuous air passage despite the interlocking of the tongues 4.

Edge rabbets 1 1 and end rabbets 15 may be provided in the outer face of each block at the top edge and at one end so as to avoid likelihood of shattering the outer faces of the blocks at their meeting edges, and also to afford an ornamental space and to afford a space for pointing the seams with mortar.

Alternate corner blocks 16 are provided with shortened limbs 17 that differ from the standard limbs 18 by a difference in length equal to the thickness of the face plate, so that the face plate limbs at the corners may alternate, one above the other, as shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10,1eaving a studding or post accommodating free space 19 between the limbs 17 18 and the tongues of the corner blocks. A post 20 may be inclosed in said open space, and a binder of mortar or the like to form a bond may be applied as at 21, closing the inside of the jointed corner and to afford increased strength to the structure.

By the construction shown, perfect circus lation of air is provided for through the vertical passages 8 and the lateral passages 12.

In practical construction the structural blocks will be molded of cement, concrete, or other suitable material and when properly seasoned, dried or burned, as the case may be, they may be erected into a wall by simply laying them in place in proper order, edge above edge in the reverse series as shown at 1 and 2 in Fig. 1, the binder 7 being applied in the regular course where the tongues are not made to directly interlock with each other to thus form the bond to hold the opposite blocks of each series in place.

Each block is constructed with three faces in parallelism; to wit, an outer face a, a back face Z; formed by the alined faces 13, and an inner face 0 between the outer face and the back face and with supporting surfaces a d, and bonding teeth 6, the supporting surfaces (Z, and d being arranged in planes parallel with each other and at right angles to said faces. The vertical sides a of the tongues 4t preferably converge inwardly of the blocks toward the free ends of the tongues for convenience in withdraws ing the blocks from the molds in which they may be formed. p

The bonding teeth a, as shown in Figs. 3 and 6, lie between the produced planes of the supporting surfaces and are spaced apart therefrom, and, as shown in Fig. 7 the tips of the teeth may project beyond such planes, respectively.

A recess 7 is formed between the tip of each tooth a and the inner face 0, and another recess 9 is, formed between the tip of the tooth and the back face I; of each block, the recessed faces 5 and 6 thus forming, as shown, Z-shaped indentations with the faces 0 and the faces of the teeth 6 that bound the recesses 9. By this construction, when the blocks are erected into a wall, as shown in the drawings, with the supporting face d of one block resting on the supporting face a) of the block below, and the back face I) abutting against the inner face 0 of the op posing block, a Z-shaped recess is formed between the adjacent faces of the tongues of the superposed and opposed blocks for the purpose of receiving a binder, of mortar therein, as is clearly shown in Fig. 3.

In 7 the supporting faces are shown as spaced apart a distance less than the distance between the tips of the opposite teeth, so that, when the wall is laid, the teeth will directly interlock and form the bond and therefore in this construction no mortar is required.

In case it is desired to install apipe of extra size, a special set of blocks may be molded in which the notches to accommodate the same are made of a suitable size.

I claim 1. A structural block having an eXten-. sion formed centrally on its rear face, said extension having its upper and lower faces formed Z shape and its rear face having a recess with bevel edges.

2. A wall constructed of a series of oppositely placed structural blocks, said blocks having formed on their rear faces extensions having Z-shaped edges and beveled recesses in their ends, and a binder between said blocks and between said extensions adapted to hold the blocks solidly together.

3. A wall comprising two series of blocks having formed on their rear faces extensions with Z-shaped edges and beveled recesses in their ends, said extensions being opposite to each other, their ends overlapping, and a binder between them to hold them together.

4. A structural block constructed with an outer face, a back face and an inner face in parallelism with each other, said back face having a transverse groove therein, said block being also constructed with supporting surfaces in parallelism with each other,

and also with oppositely arranged bonding teeth between the inner face and the back face; the teeth being adapted to form a bond with like teeth of a like block when the blocks are laid in a wall substantially as set forth.

5. A structural block constructed with an outer face, a back face and an inner face in parallelism with each other, said back face having a transverse groove therein, said block being also constructed with supporting surfaces in parallelism with each other, and also with oppositely arranged bonding teeth betweenthe inner face and the back face; the teeth being adapted to form abond with like teeth; the space between the tips of the teeth being less than the space between the produced planes of the supporting surfaces.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 27th day of September, 1917.

EDWARD L. BENTON.

Witness:

JAMES R. TOWNSEND. 

